The Air Force awards the Air Force Cross to Staff Sgt. Zachary J. Rhyner, a combat controller with the 21st Special Tactics Squadron at Pope Air Force Base, N.C., for his heroic actions during a 6.5 battle in Afghanistan’s Shok Valley on April 6, 2008. Rhyner, who was a senior airman at the time of the battle, is the third living Air Force Cross recipient from the Global War on Terrorism and the only living combat controller to receive the Air Force Cross.
The U.S. military struck three Iranian oil tankers on Sept. 5, as the Trump administration and Iran battle for control over the Strait of Hormuz.
